MOSCOW, November 25. /TASS/. Mercenaries from Latin American countries within the Ukrainian armed forces are connected to US-controlled drug cartels, military expert Alexander Stepanov, program director of the Academy of Political Sciences and senior researcher at the Latin America Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told TASS.

Earlier, Colombian Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo stated that Bogota had agreed with Moscow to establish a working group to analyze the situation regarding Colombian mercenaries involved in the Ukraine conflict. Murillo emphasized that the Colombian authorities sought to prevent their compatriots from participating in armed conflicts around the world.

"More and more frequently, individuals from Latin American drug cartels operating under US control are appearing on the front lines. Recently, soldiers from the 144th Guards Motorized Rifle Division killed Colombian mercenaries while storming a stronghold in the Krasny Liman direction," Stepanov said.

Commenting on the motivation of Colombian fighters to join the hostilities in Ukraine, the expert explained that it is linked to the situation in the South American drug trafficking market. "There is a clear understanding that after the shift in policy in Colombia, when President Gustavo Petro took power, pro-American groups were largely sidelined, leading to a decline in their income. This created an ideal recruitment base for the international legion of the Ukrainian army, with detailed information on each militant and their characteristics," he said.

According to Stepanov, militants in US-controlled drug cartels face a tough choice. "They are often given two options: extradition and imprisonment in the US — since nearly all have blood on their hands and face certain charges — or a training camp and a one-way trip to Ukraine. As we see, the second option has become popular," Stepanov concluded.